To give a person “jesse” meant “to beat him, or to scold him violently.” (Thornton, American Glossary, 1:493–494; for its use among the Mormons, see, for example, JS, “The Globe,” Nauvoo Neighbor, 17 Apr. 1844, [2].)
Thornton, Richard H. An American Glossary: Being an Attempt to Illustrate Certain Americanisms upon Historical Principles. 2 vols. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott, 1912.
Nauvoo Neighbor. Nauvoo, IL. 1843–1845.